Arizona weekly enterprise., 1887-08-06
The VekOI District and its
 Mines

MIheSs
 Thirty-four miles southwest of Casa Grande is section of Arizona that shows as much volcanic action, if not more, than any other portion of the southwest. This is evidenced by the numerous cones and ridges of basalt and doleryte (com- monly called malapais) which are thickly distributed over it, metimes taking tho form of an irregular disjointed, small mountain range; again appearing in small isolated hills or swells on the plains, covered with the familiar round boulders of black scoria, spongetlike, that volca- nos have emitted in ages past. In this region the Vekol mountain range lies, trending slightly northwest by southeast, it's peaks reach an altitude of $500 odd feet. The formati III of this range, lime stone, is doubtless the oldest of it's kind in Arizona, it undoubtedly belongs to the upper Devonian age and is identical with the corniferous limestone of the up- per Heidelberg series of New York state, and which also appears at points in Ohio. Other hmestones in Arizona have been classed by some as old as the silurian age but they without doubt belong to the carboniferous period. The Vekol lime. stone has been tilted so the strata inclines to the southwest at about 32 degrees
 The bed has been considerably broken as northeasterly 1t appears in detached Il T nll I. southwesterly. This limestone extends easterly to the Jack Rabbit country and forms the foot wall of that mine, while to the west few isolated hills only ap- pear. Among the strata of the main range is a stratum of dolo'nite (magne- sian limestone) which however is only exposed in section of the range upon which are located the Vekol, Mt Vernon, Argosy, Great Eastern and Rocky mines, they being the principal locations that silver bearing ores have been found in, the two latter being old locations, the ore being but lately discovered in them. At the northwesterly end of this section of the range is a depression or saddle; here dyke of porphyry cuts through, running northeasterly and southwesterly, and it is adjoining this dyke the Vekol ore commences and extends into the stratum of dolomite southeasterly. The Mt Vernon and Argosy locations cover almost the intermediate space between the Vckol and the Great Eastern and ] Rocky mines. The Vekol mountain | therefore commences at the depression | above referred to, rises above 1t about l 200 feet and extends in an irregular ridge l nsNy and falls awSy until it meets similar depression or saddle at the southeasterly ends of the Great Eastern and Rocky mines, there another porphyry dyke cuts through, similar to the one at the Nekol. Beyond in either direction, the dolomlte is lacking entirely, and no ore to speak of has been found outside these limits This ore bearing section of mountain range doubtless has no parallel Ill Ari- zona if in the west No vein, regular defined stratum or zone of ore IS to be found in any of these mines, the ore III its rami6cation extending in every dl rection, sometimes in disconnected pock- cts. again in streaks or in punches that are irregularly connected, little seams oi ore being the link. The ores proper are Cerargyrite (chloride of, or horn silver) Areentite (silver glance or sulphide) Chaicocite (sulphidC of copper containing silver, sometimes called copper silver glance), Galenite (sulphide of lead con taining silver), also little carbonate anc chloride of lead containing silver. The ore may be called chloride, the othel compounds forming are insignificant part As stated the Great Eastern and Rocky are on the south easterly end or slope O
 the section. On the former the ore frs disco vered proved to contain considera blt lead and was not high i'll silver. The owners therefore sought for ore more like the VekoI, and here and there or their location discovered green stains SC characteristic of that mine. They have however. lately returned to the first